This invention relates to shelving for refrigerators and the like, though it is equally capable of being utilized as a bookshelf or a shelf associated with most any type of furniture as a cantilevered shelf defined by a pair of shelf brackets and a shelf panel supported therebetween.
Shelves specifically designed for refrigerators are well known, and typical thereof is the cantilevered shelf of FIG. 1 of U.S. Pat. No. 5,362,145 issued on Nov. 8, 1994 to Kevin C. Bird et al. The cantilevered shelf is formed by a planar tempered glass shelf member or panel and a pair of metal support brackets which are united to each other by a molded polymeric/copolymeric synthetic resinous thermoplastic material encapsulation or rim. The rim is molded around the entire peripheral edge of the glass shelf member or panel and forms a spill dam for containing product spills occurring when the shelf or shelf assembly is in use in an associated refrigerator compartment. Such encapsulated shelves have been exclusively manufactured and sold by the assignee of the present application and are generally utilized in high-end/expensive refrigerators because of shelf rigidity, product drip/spillage protection and the extremely attractive aesthetic appearance achieved through the injection molding or encapsulation of the shelf brackets to the glass shelf panel.
FIG. 46 of the latter patent discloses another cantilevered shelf assembly in which a rim or encapsulation of polymeric/copolymeric synthetic plastic material totally encompasses an edge of a piece of tempered glass and is snap-attached by clips of the encapsulation or rim to front and rear frame members of a generally polygonal wire frame which includes side frame brackets and associated hooks for securing the shelf assembly to conventional slotted vertical tracks of a refrigerator compartment. The aesthetics of the latter shelf assembly are inferior to those of the shelf assembly first described herein, but the cost of manufacture and assembly can be less, particularly if assembled manually in countries outside the United States having lower wages, benefits, etc. However, the latter shelf assembly retains the liquid dam or anti-drip function which is a desirable feature, particularly for cantilevered shelves upon which might be supported products tending to drip or leak, particularly when the shelf is vertically adjusted.
In lieu of the metal shelf brackets or polygonal metal wire frame of U.S. Pat. No. 5,362,145, U.S. Pat. No. 6,488,347 issued on Dec. 3, 2002 in the name of Craig Bienick discloses a refrigerator shelf formed of but two pieces of material, namely, a glass shelf panel bounded by an integral, injection-molded, one-piece frame/encapsulation/rim of polymeric/copolymeric synthetic plastic material which includes integral shelf brackets and suspension hooks defined by the encapsulation/rim. This shelf assembly includes all of the advantages of the shelf assembly first described with respect to U.S. Pat. No. 5,362,145 and desirably excludes separate metal shelf brackets. However, the entire periphery of the encapsulation and particularly the side shelf arms must be reinforced to prevent adverse torquing characteristics which would occur if the polymeric/copolymeric shelf arms were made extremely thin. Therefore, though the shelf assembly of the latter patent excludes manual assembly costs, the latter could be offset by the added cost of the polymeric/copolymeric material utilized in the injection molding of the rim/encapsulation to effect rigidity/reinforcement thereof. Obviously, such conventional material is derived from petroleum and both availability and price stability thereof have always been a problem, particularly when quoting manufacturing costs of shelves one or more years into the future, as is customary under long-term customer purchase agreements.
A relatively simplistic refrigerator shelf is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,923,260 issued on May 8, 1990 to Douglas Poulsen. The refrigerator shelf includes a pair of metal cantilevered shelf supports or brackets which are rigidly interconnected to each other by a rigid rear support rod or cross member. The glass shelf is inserted into a rear shelf retainer which carries a downwardly opening U-shaped clip which engages the rear rod. A U-shaped front cross member is also rigidly secured between front or free ends of the cantilevered shelf supports. Though relatively simplistic with respect to the various parts required to form the shelf, the welding of the front and rear cross members to the shelf brackets is expensive, as is the complex nature of the extruded rear clip.
The latter patents and those additionally specified in U.S. Pat. No. 6,488,347 establish the state of the cantilevered shelf art over which the present disclosure is considered to be a novel and unobvious departure.